World Briefs

Local Church Members Respond to Disasters in Australia

Between December’s flooding that continued into January and Cyclone Yasi making landfall in northern Queensland on February 2, Australia has been hard hit by natural disasters in early 2011.

Local Church members in southern Queensland have assisted with cleanup, fundraising, assembling cleaning kits, and distributing relief supplies. Local Church leaders began coordinating relief efforts with government officials.

“One in a Million” Shares Children’s Stories

As the Church reaches one million Primary children, the Friend is sponsoring the “One in a Million” project featuring photo and audio slideshows of individual Primary children around the world.

The slideshows are made to create a sense of community among the worldwide Primary. They will be added to throughout the year and can be viewed at lds.org/friend.

Distribution Services Merges with Deseret Book

To improve efficiency and better serve Church members, Distribution Services has expanded an agreement with Deseret Book to provide Church-produced materials through Deseret Book outlets. Under the new agreement, Deseret Book will offer Distribution materials according to prices and policies established by the Church.

Visit newsroom.lds.org for more details and information.

Latter-day Saint Charities Provides Clean Water

Nearly a billion people on the earth lack access to clean water, often resulting in water-borne diseases such as cholera, diarrhea, and typhoid. But since 2002, the Church has helped seven million people in more than 5,000 communities obtain access to clean water sources. “Water Is Happiness,” available on news.lds.org, shows the story of LDS Charities bringing clean water to a village in Sierra Leone.

“Water is Happiness” on news.lds.org tells about clean water coming to Sierra Leone.